I started taking it 24th April and it was amazing. I had been in so much pain for months . I am now on 225mg daily but I am getting breakthrough pain now. I know I need to increase dosage but hate side effects so I am resisting at the moment.

Thing is I am hooked now and if the gp's take me off it I don't know how I would cope. Hope it works well for you.

Sorry to hear you had cancer and hope you have beaten it . Have friends who are fighting it at the moment . I began feeling unwell last October but the severe pain started in January. Get severe stabbing /burning pain sometimes it feels like having electric shock. That is why they gave me Pregabalin. I was literally bed bound and cried every day in pain. I do have some quality of life now on this med but I still cannot do the things I use to do.

Gp put everything down to stress but my hair has gone dry and brittle so don't think that is stress.

Lets hope one day they will find a cure for cancer and Fibro/Cfs and ME .

I am so genuinely sorry to read that and I want to sincerely wish you all the best of luck. I take Pregabalin and get very dry skin but I am not using Tramadol. I would discuss this with your GP or Medical Specialist as there may be something that they can give you for this? I have been prescribed steroid cream (for short term use only) on several occasions when my skin gets really dry, and it really works for me.

I take 450mg pregabalin and up to 400mg tramadol daily, have been for last year. I did find that I got cracks at the side of my mouth which was so painful and ugly, not a good look when you're feeling crap as well!! Got very itchy, painful, cracked hands and feet but fortunately these symptoms have subsided. Unfortunately this is due to my body becoming used to this drug intake!! Thing is Trace that even with the nasty side effects, the benefits totally outweigh the costs. So until an alternative hits the docs, I'm stuck with it. It's difficult to pinpoint which causes those effects but my instinct says Pregabalin, I have friends who need to take tramadol and don't have these effects.

I totally empathise with sweetheart, I had to put my heels away and am now looking at the prospect of 'comfortable' shoes. I'm only 47 and heels were part of my everyday wardrobe but hey ho, lifes a b@*!h. lol.

It's like you live my life, on top of all fibro nonsense, I've now got chest infection and constant dizziness and nausea (more pills). Felt so low yesterday that I took myself out to garden (for as long as my skin would allow) and repeated to myself 'at least I'm still here'. I do that quite often and it's true, at least I am still here. So for the brief times I am pain free, I make it count.

So Trace, when we look at our heels, we can say 'at least I got to wear them'.

Sunshine here is going now, which I'm glad for as got banging headache, neckache, backache etc. etc. But at least I'm still here and in the words of Scarlett, 'Tomorrow is another day'.